556 



ELEMENTARY PHYSIOLOGY 



would appear therefore that the intercellular substance 

 of the connective tissue in question is composed of (a) 

 collagenous filaments, united by some cementing 

 substance into bundles, and of (6) elastic fibres. These 

 latter are generally united into long meshed networks 

 (Fig. 182). 



With care, the cells or connective tissue corpijs- 

 cles may also be seen even in fresh, living connective 

 tissue (Fig. 183) ; but, as has been stated, they are most 

 distinctly visible when the tissue is treated with dilute 

 acetic acid. These cells, when seen in the fi-esh tissue, 



Fio. 182.— Elastic Fibres of Connective Tissue, formino a loobk 

 Network. 



Obtained by special preparation from subcutaneous tissue. Magnified 800 

 diameters. 



care being taken to prevent the post-mortem changes 

 which they readily undergo, are found to be flattened 

 plates almost like epithelial scales, but with very irregular 

 contours. They closely adhere to, and are, as it were, 

 bent round the convex faces of the larger bundles of colla- 

 genous fibres. 



Besides these ^xerf connective tissue corpuscles as they 

 are called, white blood corpuscles, or lymph corpuscles, or 

 bodies exceedingly like them, are found lying loose in the 

 fluid which occupies the meshes of the netwox'k of fibres, 

 and appear to wander or travel through the spaces of the 



